International Relations

This weekend I have been busy hanging out with my roommate and her family. Her family is visiting from Rockford and have been nice enough to take myself and Frenchie to some top notch restaurants and The Field Museum. Yesterday, we spent 4 hours in the Field Museum gawking at dinosaur bones, mummies, and Irish deer. It was quite educational. Did you know we're still in an Ice Age? Or that every day 38 species go extinct? I don't think I'll be returning to the museum anytime soon. I realize I need to spend more time at museums, though. I've never been to the Shedd Aquarium and Museum of Science and Industry (unless you count the time I worked an event there). As an art critic, I really need to experience more exhibits. I will try to do this soon.

So far living with Frenchie has been going well. I hope I do not patronize and/or offend him. I hope he doesn't think I'm fou. Half the time I don't know what to say to him. My roommate is much more glib than me. I'm kinda shy around people I hardly know. She on the other hand needs to ferme la bouche at times. I feel like my life has changed since the arrival of Frenchie. Maybe I'm destined for international stardom. Maybe I will finally put all my years of French education to use. Maybe I will become fluent in French and travel around the world. I desperately want to travel to Europe. I've never been there and it's something seriously lacking from my life. Either way, a great adventure is ahead. This is my chance to re-discover Chicago, and do some things I've never done before like go on top of the John Hancock, finally hit a Cubs game, etc. I want Frenchie to have fun and be okay. I feel bad he has to basically live in our living room and sleep on the couch for the time being. (Julien--if you're reading this, I hope I didn't freak you out with some previous comments I made about you in this blog. Je te pense sympathique et beau.) I really want my other roommate to move out. It's like when you break up with someone and you still have to see them all the time. It's awkward.

Tomorrow I start a new job. If I had a dime for everytime I started a new job, I wouldn't need to work. I'm nervous about it. I want to do well and make lots of money. I'm sick of being pauvre. I'm also sick of writing for free. More and more, I have less time and energy to write, so I've decided to maybe drop some publications I write for. I want to focus on New City and The Onion, and I'll always write for Innerview. I'll still do My Open Bar and Radio Free Chicago for free, but other than that, I don't want to dedicate my time to publications that don't pay or are not well known or established. You get screwed with the less established ones. I need more freedom to go to events, like art exhibits, bars, etc. Writing for me is a 24/7 job for. It continues into the weekends. Sometimes it feels like doing homework and this is when it stops being fun. I want it to always be fun.

Today Blast for the Past comes to town. There's something utterly romantic about a guy who I haven't seen in 6 years leaving the warmth of Arizona to travel 2,000 miles to one of the coldest cities in the nation, Chicago, to visit me for a couple of days. Sigh.

Monday is my roommate's b-day (the one who is staying). Happy b-day, Kat! If anyone sees a slightly crazed looking girl in the Sears Tower tomorrow, wish her a happy b-day. Monday is also free coffee Monday at McDonald's. I always forget about it. Someone needs to remind me.